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UC Davis, Ganesha Lab and UC Davis Chile: Californian and Chilean institutions agree to collaborate in facilitating the Movement of Technology and Startup Companies between both territories

December 21, 2017

Earlier this year, Markus Schreyer, creator and CEO of GaneshaLab SPA; Dushyant Pathak, Associate Vice Chancellor for Technology Management and Corporate Relations at UC Davis and Executive Director of its Venture Catalyst program; and Alan Bennett, Executive Director of UC Davis Chile, agreed, on behalf of their respective institutions, to collaborate in facilitating the movement of startup companies between Chile and California. The goal of this collaboration is to provide new commercial opportunities to technology developers, to bring innovative technologies to Chile and California and to promote economic development in both regions.

On Friday, December 22 at 9:30 M the three groups will attend a pitch given by Nicolás Morelli, CEO of VACuCh to evaluate the potential of this company to make the transition and to “land” in California.

Using Chilean copper, the startup VACuCh developed a new material that makes cow milking cleaner and promotes health of the cows. Pezanbac is an antibacterial liner that prevents the spread of bovine mastitis (inflammation of the breasts), the most common disease in the dairy industry. As for most science-based startups, the market for VACuCh in Chile is limited: with only 500,000 dairy cows, the country imports more dairy products than it exports. Therefore, a key strategy for VaCuCH is to enter international markets. California seemed like a good place to start considering that it is the top producer of dairy products in the United States with 1.8 million dairy cows.

After four months of intense training and workshops with outstanding mentors to improve their business plan and prepare them to face the demanding North American market, VACuCh won GaneshaLab´s second competition. The GaneshaLab acceleration program supports the internationalization of startups at early stages and has prepared VaCuCH to take the next step, which could be through the Cooperation Agreement that GaneshaLab signed with UC Davis' "Venture Catalyst" program and the innovation center that UC Davis has in the country, UC Davis Chile.

“For GaneshaLab the cooperation with UC Davis is a major milestone in expanding our services and value creation for our clients. Given the strong entrepreneurship trends in Biotech and specifically BioAgro, working with UC Davis will enable our startups to not only access the strategic California market and the vast scientific resources but also profit from the supporting network UC Davis Venture Catalyst has established for Entrepreneurs,” says Markus Schreyer, CEO of GaneshaLab SPA.

“Our Cooperation Agreement with GaneshaLab leverages the relationships and expertise that UC Davis Chile has developed and the capabilities and resources of the Venture Catalyst team to develop a globally connected entrepreneurial ecosystem,” said Dushyant Pathak. “We look forward to our cooperation with Ganesha Lab to be a potential driver of economic impact in the Davis-Sacramento region by facilitating opportunities for soft landing in California for Chilean startups.”

“One of UC Davis Chile´s pillars is its support for science-based entrepreneurship. This, in order to fulfill what Chile expects from us - through Corfo's International Centers of Excellence Attraction Program – and to continue with the innovation tradition of UC Davis, in California. In this sense, we have looked for a partner with extensive experience and professionalism, and GaneshaLab is a great fit,” says Alan Bennett, Executive Director of UC Davis Chile.

“VACuCh will be a different company and I will be a different professional after the experience in California,” concludes Nicolas Morelli, Co-Founder of VACuCh.

About GaneshaLab

GaneshaLab is an international scale-up boutique for biotechnology and life sciences EarlyStage Chilean startups in the process of internationalization and scaling. GaneshaLab counts on a network of contacts that includes leaders of the most influential institution and companies in the field. More information: www.facebook.com/pg/Ganeshalab

About Venture Catalyst de UC Davis

UC Davis’ Venture Catalyst facilitates the translation of University research and technology by driving the development of new ventures.

UC Davis is known worldwide for its leadership in research. Each year this research leads to new innovations and technologies that are translated to the marketplace through UC Davis startup companies. Venture Catalyst drives the successful development of new ventures based on UC Davis intellectual property through its collaborations, programmatic activities, and outreach efforts. More information: http://research.ucdavis.edu/offices/vc/

About UC Davis Chile

UC Davis Chile was born in 2015 as a strategic ally of companies and institutions from the agri-food and environmental sectors. In association with local universities -Tarapacá, Andrés Bello and Talca- and companies. The center of innovation works in delivering to the market and society, science-based technological solutions through the implementation of a collaborative research platform; the development of disruptive technologies and the transfer and diffusion of efficient applications. More information: www.ucdavischile.org